Memoirs and confessions of Francis Volkmar Reinhard

Preface

The first object of this work is to make the public acquainted with the life and character of the learned, pious, and eloquent F. V. Reinhard of the last generalion, for more than twenty years Chief-Court Preacher at Dresden. It is divided into two pans. The fifst comprises his letters or confessions, in which he gives an account of his education for the sacred ministry, and a general criticism of his sermons. These letters were occasioned by a review of some of his works in the Hall. Lit. Zeit , and v^^ritten during the winter evenings of 1809-10. They have passed through several editions, of which, however, I have seen only the first. While translating Reinhard's Plan of the Founder of Christianity, I became much interested in these letters ; and deeming them an excellent piece of autobiography, 1 thought they would constitute an acceptable present to the public ; and having consulted a friend, upon whose judgment I relied, who had also read them, and ascertained the coincidence of his views with my own in these respects, I prepared them for the press. In the mean time, I felt the need of mak-

IV PREFACE.

ing some additions to them by way of completing the view they give of their author ; and hence, added the memoirs or second part. The translation of the confessions was not a difficult task, but the second part has cost me much and severe labor. It has been drawn chiefly from Bottiger's Delineation of Reinhard^s Character ; a pamphlet rich in materials, but written by an antiquary in an intricate, parenthetical style and full of learned allusions. It contains matter, however, drawn from other sources, interwoven with ideas of my own, the whole of which has been arranged in the order which struck me as the best.* The likeness which accompanies the volume was originally taken from a portrait of Reinhard, drawn three years before his death, by his brother-in-law Von Charpentier. This portrait was considered an excellent one. It supposes Reinhard to be sitting in his study. With one-iiand he sustains his head, while with the other resting on the Bible, he holds a manuscript, containing a train of thought deduced from the Scriptures, in meditating upon which, the light of faith bursts in upon his mind, and he is supposed to exclaim, " Yea, thou art the truth." The look in the original is said to be very striking and destitute of all ambiguity. Much of its expressiveness was lost in the first process of reducing the portrait and engraving it.

I am aware that the work will, after all, furnish but an imperfect account of Reinhard ; especially so, as all the biographies which have been written of him in Germany, are more or less imperfect, time enough not havingyet elapsed to permit many of his letters, directed as they were, to persons still on the theatre of action, to be brought from their

* Perhaps ihe reader should be iuformed, that I have noi reduced the dol-- lars named in the course of the work, to our own currenc}? 5 and hence, ihg^t ^ey express a little too, much.

PREFACE.

hiding-places From what is said, however, the reader will readil}' perceive, that Reinhard was no ordinary personage. Few have been more respected or useful in life, or more sincerely and universally lamented in death. The news of his decease clad ojd and young with mourning, and called forth spontaneous expressions of sorrow from almost every quarter. He appears to have been equally conspicuous as a scholar, philosopher and Christian. He had no deformities or excrescences of any kind. He was well proportioned in every part, and constituted a harmonious whole. On prying into his character, we meet with no disappointment, nothing offensive. The more we examine it, the more we find to admire. To develop such a character unable as w^e are to penetrate the sacred interior of the mind, and forced to content ourselves with its external phenomena, is, of course though desirable, a difficult task. It is delightful, however, amidst the pain and disgust felt by every reader of biography, on discovering in its most exahed characters, unanticipated faults and defects, to find here and there one, which we can contemplate with pleasure, and examine with satisfaction, constantly cheered with new beauties and excellencies, and assured of something superior beyond.'^*

My sole object, however, in this work, is not to make the public acquainted with Reinhard's character. From his confessions I fondly hope for some beneficial results to the cause of truth. Not that the views expressed in the ninth letter, which excited such commotion among Rationalists and others in Germany on the first appearance of this work, are new to our countryme *. T he two principles there laid down have long been looked upon to a greater or less degree by Evangelical Christians among us, as the only ones in the case to which a consistent thinker can resort, as a third does not exist ; and to reason as *1

Yi FREFAGE.

Tzschirner has done, (see Note, p. 64,) is, as Reinhard justly remarks in a letter to Politz,*a petitio elenchi, the contents of the Bible having nothing to do with the question. I refer to the naain object for which these letters were written by Reinhard ; which was, by pointing out the excellencies and defects of his own education, and by various hints, to show young candidates for the sacred ministry, the course they should take in preparing for it, as well as after they have entered upon the performance of its duties. Coming as these letters do, from one of the most distinguished preachers of his age, they must be deserving of attention in this respect. Will not some, on reading what is said in the sixth letter about eloquence, discover, that they have hitherto had wrong conceptions of it, and been unable even to define it f Will they not be compelled to admit, that they have often spoken in tones of thunder, when they should have spoken in tones of sympathy and tenderness; and by their manner excited strong suspicions of hypocrisy, when they thought themselves exhibiting the strongest proofs of sincerity ? Will not some, on reading what Reinhard says about the study of the poets, find they have almost entirely neglected it, and hence, failed to use the best means possible, for cultivating susceptibility of emotion, without which, genuine eloquence cannot exist ? And may I not hope, that they will hereafter follow his example, and apply themselves to Milton. Shakespeare, Cowper, and even the imperfect English translation of Klopstock's Messiah? — a work, which by its spirit throws mor^ light upon some passages of the Gospels, than half the commentaries which have ever, been written. And may not some when they read what Reinhard says of the importance of general literature to a preacher of the Gospel, find that they are quite deficient.

PREFACE!. Vn

in this respect ? Those upon whom this work produces any such effects, will soon perceive^ that little time enough is allowed the young disciple for a preparatory course, and that all systematic study should not be brought to a close, as it too generally is, as soon as a man is comfortably settled in the ministry. I hope that the motives which have dictated these remarks, will not be misapprehended. That they are well founded, those who reflectupon the subject, will, I fear, find too much reason to believe. I know the ambassador of the cross is not at liberty to turn aside into the field of literature, to pluck a single useless flower. With every branch of study, however, which bears upon the business intrusted to his hands, qualifies him to a greater or less degree, for detecting the sophisms upon which error is founded, and enables him to trace the truth back through nature up to nature^ s God, he should be intimately acquainted. No matter how ardent his imagination may be, or acute his reasoning powers. The greater his genius in these respects^ the more necessary is it for him to have a thorough training, lest, through ignorance of the history of other men's thoughts, he suppose himself peculiarly favored of heaven, and become a dangerous fanatic. There is no possibility of a minister's being too skilful in reasoning, or in detecting the movements of the heart. Christianity addresses itself to the noblest faculties of the human soul, and unlike every other religion, challenges the most thorough and extensive investigation ; and in no other way than by a constant exercise of all the faculties of the mind in seeking truth and practising it, can one be suitably qualified to act as a negociator between God and man. Amidst the glorious revivals with which we are blessed, is there no danger of our degenerating in this respect from our fathers, those giant minds and rigid students of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries ? But I tread

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on sacred ground and am entering a field wide and alluring, which I must not venture to explore.

The Lord grant, that the light of truth may beam forth, until Atheism and infidelity, which fade away before it like dew before the sun, are banished from the earth, and Jesus Christ is worshipped as the God of the universe.

Oliver A. Taylor.

AndoveVj Theological Seminary, March 12th, 1832i

Letter V

Goes to Wittemberg — Resolves to devote himself to the ministry — Applies closely to the most important studies — Hears Schioc-kh on church history— Reads Saurin's Passion Sermons — Concludes to remain and prepare himself for teaching 3 31

X CONTENTS.

Points out the defects of his education — Exculpates himself for them in part — Warns young- students against them — iMeans by which he provided for their remedy — Fine description of eloquence, &c. 3 - 36

Letter VII

Prepares for teaching — Lectures— Becomes Professor Extraordinary of Philosophy, Professor Ordinary ot Theology, and Provost of the Castle Church — Passes through a painful struggle with doubts — Preserved from skepticism by respect for the Bible and for morality — The effect of all this on his ministerial education 3 - - - - 45

Letter VIII

Becomes a Pastor — Ministerial habits — Complains of bis memory — No imitator — Wrote very methodically — His first sermons quite defective — Ought to have read and studied ihe best masters 3 - - 52

Letter IX

Chooses to speak of his creed — Began preaching in times of great reh'gious controversy — was censured by some, apologized for, by others, for adhering to Orthodoxy — Very much pained by the latter — How he arrived at his religious views — Early saw the necessity of adhering entirely to reason, or entirely lo revelation — Those following" a niiddle course, invoked in uncertainty— Knew not what they were about— Felt himself obliged to adhere entirely to revelation- Welcomes truth however from all quarters — A belief in revelation favorable to reason and efllect— The grand cause of his adherence to the Gospel, his need of a Saviour— Solemn conclusion 3 - - 59

LE TTER X.

His mode of proceeding in the invention and choice of themes— Need ofphilosophy, &c.— Of variety— Common-place^book of subjects- Mode of examining historical texts — Must throw ourselves back into the age—Kinds of knowledge requisiie— Illustrations— Aids- Didactic texts— Different kinds of them— Mode of treatment— Illustrations— Must conceive ourselves in the circumstances in which these texts were written 3 ^ - - - ^ " - - 72

Letter XI

Many object to the logical arrangement of sermons — Answered-r,- The arrangement should not be concealed — Points out faulty arrangements in his sermons— Warns young preachers against too great attention to arrangement^A gainst uniformity of arrangement 3 - 8S

CONTENTS. \ Xi

Letter XII

Speaks of the composition of his Sermons — Their defects — Not adapted to country con^eg-ations — Examples — Difference of ancient and modem eloquence — Has used some figures of speech too often — Failed of easy transitions — Of a correct use of pronouns — Criticisms — Of publishing- a selection of his Sermons 5 - - - - 95

Part II

I. Last Sickness and Death 5 - - , 105

II. His youth and education 5 - - - 113

in. At Wittemberg 5 as a teacher 5 his mode of holding exercises with

the students, and habits of life 3 117

IV. At Dresden ; as a preacher, examiner of candidates for the sacred

ministry, as an author, and superintendent of schools 5 - 130

V. General character, habits of life and domestic qualities, with notices

of his wives, and concluding remarks 3 . ■ - - 148

ERRATA.

Page 34th, 30th line, dele 5 from preparations. Page 67th, last line, dele every^ Page 131st, 13th line for doj read no. Page 149, 19th line, dele upon.

CONFESSIONS, &c

PART I.

Letter I

Apology for these letters — Object of them — Reasons which induced the author to publish so many sermons.

You in reality, then, take no offence at the number of my printed sermons, amounting as they do, to about thirty volumes. On the other hand, you wish to know by what means I have been enabled to produce so many worth perusal, and for this purpose, request me to give you a minute account of the education I received, preparatory to becoming a minister of the Gospel. I will comply with your request, but in such a manner, that what I impart to you, may also be given to the public. Indeed, you do not wish to confine my confessions, in this respect, to yourself. You naturally expect to find many things in what I say to you, which will be useful to those just entering upon the ministry, serve to guard them against various errors, and be of advantage to them in many ways. I will not deny that this may be the case. It is impossible for me to make such disclosures as you expect from me, without taking notice of the great defects of my homiletical education, and acknowledging the errors into which I have fallen ; — without honestly telling you what there is in my sermons deserving of censure, and why I have not been able to approximate nearer to the perfect pattern of a ser- ;non which lies in my mind. If I do so, from the account, 2

14 LETTER I.

young preachers will, of course, be able to draw much valuable instruction. At least, it will not be my fault, if those who take my sermons for patterns, imitate the very things which they ought to avoid.

But, while I readily admit that the information you desire of me, may be of general use, I must confess it is not without struggles that I have brought myself to comply with your wishes. It is difficult, nay, almost impossible, to say much of one's self, especially before the world, without exciting a suspicion in the minds of people, that one thinks himself of great importance, and imagines himself and his little affairs worth the nodce of the public. You know me too well not to pronounce me entirely free from every thing of the kind ; but will others, less acquainted with me, do the same ? Will not the whole thing appear to be ihe result of vanity and arrogance, and highly deserving reprehension ?

You do not require me, however, to do what so many excellent men have done respecting themselves in a manner which met with the approbation of almost every reader, — to give a minute account of my whole life. In my confessions to you, therefore, I shall touch upon those circumstances merely, which may have exerted an influence upon my education as a minister of the Gospel. Every thing that does not properly belong to this subject, every thing that is disconnected with the business and science of preaching, or at most, seems calculated to excite a suspicion of my aiming at vain glory, I shall pass over in silence. You must be satisfied then, if, in the series of letters I write to you, you receive an account of the manner in which I became a preacher, and an impartial criticism of my own sermons. '^ Geratur," in the words of a man with whom I know not that I am worthy of any other comparison, let me say, '' Geratur tibi mos, quoniam me non ingenii prsedicatorem esse vis, sed laboris mei."^

You must expect nothing more from me to-day, than an account of the circumstances which induced me to publish so many volumes of sermons. Strictly speaking, it was never my intention to print any of my sermons ; much

* Cicero in Bnito, c. 65^ $ 233.

LETTER I. 15

less could I ever have thought of printing a whole library of them. 1 had preached as provost of the university church at Wittemberg for two years, when, in 1786, I permitted a collection of my sermons to be published. As I was then obliged to apply all my powers to other matters, I should never have done so, had it not been for the earnest importunities of my friends. Of the numerous sermons, however, which I then had by me, I published only sixteen in this collection, supposing that with these I should satisfy the desires of my friends, without being obliged to deviate altogether from my resolution, not to trouble the public whh many sermons.^

Indeed, with the exception of the two which I delivered on being transferred from one station to another, the profits of which were to be applied to the establishment of a young ladies' school at Wittemberg, I printed but a single sermon during the six following years, though I preached in the mean time with unremitting diligence, at the above-named place, and had begun to do so with still greater zeal at Dresden. With none of the numerous requests which I received, to publish many sermons, did I comply; and it was not until 1793, when a new edition of my first volume was called for, that 1 added a second, which, like the first, comprised but sixteen sermons ; which I thought would satisfy people, and be the last.

Soon afterwards, or in the year 1795, a proposal was made in the Imperial Advertiser,! and sustained by various reasons, that I should publish all the sermons I had delivered. To this proposal, however, ignorant as I was from what quarter it came, I should have paid little or no attention, and by it, hardly have been induced to change my original purpose, in regard to printing but a few sermons, if a circumstance had not occurred which almost obliged me to do so. My sermons were taken down as they were delivered. This was done by ignorant persons, who acquired their living by means of the sermons which they sent into the city and province. It is easy to imagine what a form my sermons in this way received.

* See the preface to the first edition of these sermons. t The Reichsanzeiger.

16 LETTER I.

I cannot deny that when some of these transcribed sermons first fell into my hands, I was exceedingly vexed. You may believe me, my dear friend, or not, but I could hardly recognize myself in them. I was astonished at the nonsense which was put into my mouth ; and yet it was not in my power to prevent these transcripts from being taken, as the goodnaturedness of the readers made it too profitable a business for the transcribers to relinquish it. I was obliged, therefore, to choose between two evils, and either see my sermons brought into general circulation in a very garbled and corrupted state, or publish them myself, as they were originally delivered. As I had been requested to do the latter, and it appeared to be the only means left me for avoiding a thousand errors, so it appeared to me of the two evils to be the least ; and hence, agreeably to the advice of my friends, I made choice of it."^

As soon as one collection of the sermons which I had delivered in 1795, made its appearance, I received urgent requests, not only in the Imperial Advertiser, but from various quarters, to continue printing them ; and as the principal reason which induced me to publish the first, existed in regard to the others, so I was induced, rather than see ray sermons circulating in a garbled and corrupted state, to accede to the importance of these requests. In the mean time, people continued to receive them with unanticipated favor, and from various quarters, I derived very positive evidence of their having been productive of good. Notice was taken of them even in foreign countries, and many of them were translated into other languages ; and though I was more than once resolved to stop printing them, yet, partly out of compliance with public requests, and partly out of compliance with the wishes of friends made known to me in private letters, I was induced to deviate from my resolution ; so that I have now printed all the sermons which I preached for a series of fifteen years, which constitute the number of volumes extant.

But enough for once. As soon as I get time for the purpose, my dear friend, I will come to what you particularly wish to know, — the character and course of my homiletical education. Farewell.

* See the preface to the first edition of the Sermons of 1795,

LETTER 11. 17

Letter II

Early education — Inslrucled by his father — Becomes attached to well-arranged sermons — Learns the ancient languages — Fond of poetry, but destitute of good poets — Gets hold of Haller.

If you wish to know all the circumstances which exerted a decided influence upon my education for the ministry, you must accompany me far back into the years of my childhood. This is the only way in which I shall be able to give you a radical and historical account of my sermons, — to show you how they assumed the form they possess.

For the whole of my early education, I am indebted to my father, who was my teacher until my sixteenth year. John Stephen Matthias Reinhard,* a man whose name would always have been sacred to me, even if he had not been my father, was a minister at Vohenstrauss, a market town in the dukedom of Sulzbach. He was unanimously looked upon by all, as one of the best preachers in that region. He could not indeed rise entirely above the faults of his age. Agreeably to the custom then prevalent, he made choice of a particular method, and selected a general theme, upon which he treated in all its relations and extent, until another year commenced. His thorough education, however, deep know^ledge of human nature, great experience, and vivacious delivery, introduced so many changes into his method, rendered his discourses so attractive, connected them so intimately and firmly together, and made them such a well arranged whole, that he was not only heard with uniform attention by his church, but listened to with pleasure by strangers ; it being usual for many on their way to or from Prague, so to order their affairs as to stop on the Sabbath morning and hear him preach. Among the peculiar qualities for which his sermons were

* My father wrote his name Reinhart, but for reasonS; a part of which he himself suggested. I thought it best to exchange the t for a d,

*2

18 LETTER II.

distinguished, may be named a strict and minute arrangement of every thing they contained. That this arrangement was perfectly natural, and obvious at first glance, you may infer from the fact, that, when a lad from ten to eleven years of a^e, I could remember it, and write it down upon paper on my return home. I did so, and, as I found the exercise pleased my father, for he usually examined what I had written, and corrected it whenever he found it wrong, I regularly continued this practice every Sabbath, until I had acquired such skill in this respect, that not a single topic escaped me.

The result was, as you may infer, that I early formed the conception , of a sermon strictly arranged, and so disposed in regard to all its main parts, as easily to be retained in the memory, — a conception, accompanied wuth all the allurements of a paternal example, and so firmly fastened in my soul, as never again to be extirpated. From this time onward, every sermon was entirely lost to me, which either had no plan, or one which I was unable to comprehend ; and this is the reason why most of the sermons which I afterwards heard in various places, presented me with no attractions.

Not less important or rich in results, was the instruction which I received from my father in the ancient languages. He was an excellent philologist, and read the ancients with feeling and a correct and lively apprehension of their sentiment. He did not seek at first to impart this feeling and such an apprehension, to me. On the other hand, when we commenced reading an ancient work together, his principal object was to increase my knowledge of the language, by entering into a philological explanation of every thing it contained. The other part of the task was left for another time. During the day he was engaged in the laborious duties of his office, but the evenings, after supper, he spent at home, taking enjoyment and repose in the bosom of his family. As on these occasions, he early discovered in me a susceptibility for conversation upon subjects of general utility and a serious character, so he began to devote the time which he spent with his children from eight o'clock in the evening to ten, almost exclusively to me, conversing with me upon such subjects as were

LETTER II. 19

adapted to my age and attainments. It Was on these occasions that that love was awakened in me for the study of the ancients which increased with after years, and remains with me still. It was his custom to converse with me upon some passage of an ancient work, especially in the Latin, (the Greek I was then unable to read.) These passages were generally selected from Virgil and Cicero, the two classics which he admired the most, and which we had begun to read together. In these exercises, nothing was said respecting philology. Our sole object was to discover in what the beauty, ingeniousness, greatness, and sublimity of the passage consisted ; and these were developed by him with a fire which entered into my heart and early convinced me, that the ancients were the genuine masters of poetry and eloquence, and that we must learn of them and take them for models.

In the mean time, however, as regards my native language, I was quite deserted. As early as my ninth year indeed, I felt an inclination for poetry, which might have been strengthened, had there been any thing to strengthen it. Scarcely had I been able to read a single German poet widi feeling, when my father lost his library, which was a valuable one for that time and place, in a disastrous fire, not a single leaf of it being saved. I, who had begun to hanker more and more after the German poets, was now confined to the Sulzbach Hymn Book, at this time a very miserable one, Canitz's poems, and Brookes'^ metrical translation of Pope's Essay on Man. Accordingly, I read these books again and again, imitated the poetry, and tried to do for myself all I could. I had an obscure feeling, indeed, that they were far from being perfect. In short, I could never avoid thinking there was something far above them in point of excellence, and this, because my father had already pointed out to me something superior to them, among the ancients. Two years elapsed, however, before I was able to light upon any thing better in our own language ; v/ith reference to which it should be recollected, that the state of our literature had but just begun to improve, and that the Upper Palatinate was al-

* [For a notice of Canitz and Brockes. see Memoirs of Goethe; N. Y. 1824, p. 302, and p, 306.]

20 LETTER II.

most entirely destitute of every thing which the authors of this improvement had already produced.

But now, my friend, 1 come to an event, whichj though small in itself, was, in respect to my education, highly important, and rich in results. I had reached my thirteenth year, when my eldest sister was married to a young clergyman by the name of Schatzler. While on a visit to my father's, he discovered my inclination for poetry, and my lamentable destitution of good writers in this department, and presented me with the poems of Haller. It is in vain for me to attempt to express to you the joy and transport with which I read and devoured this poet. All at once the problem which had vexed me was solved. I now supposed myself to have found what I had sought for in my Brookes and Cnnitz, in vain. It was not long before I knew my Haller by heart. Of course, I imitated him ; and, as every thing that I found in my admired pattern, struck me as beautiful, I was pleased with his provincialisms among the rest ; as even then I was ^ able to discover them. Indeed, I employed them in my own verses, and, in the midst of the Upper Palatinate, wrote as though I was a native of Berne. "^